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2025 Best Graphic Design Schools in the Great Lakes Region

30 Colleges in the Great Lakes Region
1,520 Graphic Design Degrees Awarded
Graphic Design is of the hottest degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #107 most popular major in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 30 schools in the Great Lakes Region to determine which ones were the best for graphic design students pursuing a degree. Combined, these schools handed out 1,520 degrees in graphic design to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Graphic Design School

Best Graphic Design Schools in the Great Lakes Region The graphic design program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Graphic Design rankings. For our Best Overall Graphic Design School rankings, we roll up the results of our degree-level rankings, weighted by the number of degrees awarded at that level.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Graphic Design Rankings by Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Graphic Design
Bachelor's Degrees in Graphic Design
Master's Degrees in Graphic Design

When choosing the right school for you, it's important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we've created a number of major-specific rankings, including this Best Graphic Design Schools in the Great Lakes Region list to help you make the college decision. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.

Best Schools for Graphic Design in the Great Lakes Region

If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the graphic design degrees they offer, see the list below.

10 Top Great Lakes Region Schools in Graphic Design

1
Michigan State crest
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In MI
38 Graphic Design Degrees Awarded

Michigan State University is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in graphic design. Located in the city of East Lansing, Michigan State is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #54 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Michigan State is a great university overall.

There were about 38 graphic design students who graduated with this degree at Michigan State in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in graphic design from Michigan State University

2
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In IL
76 Graphic Design Degrees Awarded

Columbia College Chicago is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in graphic design. Located in the city of Chicago, Columbia is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #212 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Columbia is a great college overall.

There were approximately 76 graphic design students who graduated with this degree at Columbia in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in graphic design from Columbia College Chicago

Sponsored
Bachelors Degree Type
BA in Graphic Design & Media Arts Program Name

Translate your creative ideas through concept, design and digital media with a bachelor's in graphic design online from Southern New Hampshire University.

More information about a degree in BA in Graphic Design & Media Arts from Southern New Hampshire University

Related Programs

3
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In IL
50 Graphic Design Degrees Awarded

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in graphic design. Located in the city of Champaign, UIUC is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #41 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UIUC is a great university overall.

There were about 50 graphic design students who graduated with this degree at UIUC in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in graphic design from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

4
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In WI
42 Graphic Design Degrees Awarded

Any student who is interested in graphic design needs to check out Madison Area Technical College. Located in the large city of Madison, Madison College is a public college with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #223 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Madison College is a great college overall.

There were approximately 42 graphic design students who graduated with this degree at Madison College in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in graphic design from Madison Area Technical College

5
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
3rd Most Popular In WI
33 Graphic Design Degrees Awarded

Located in the city of Milwaukee, MIAD is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

There were about 33 graphic design students who graduated with this degree at MIAD in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in graphic design from Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design

6
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In WI
46 Graphic Design Degrees Awarded

UW - Stout is a moderately-sized public university located in the town of Menomonie. This university ranks 29th out of 46 schools for overall quality in the state of Wisconsin.

There were about 46 graphic design students who graduated with this degree at UW - Stout in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in graphic design from University of Wisconsin - Stout

7
Ferris crest
Ferris State University
Big Rapids, MI
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
3rd Most Popular In MI
43 Graphic Design Degrees Awarded

Located in the remote town of Big Rapids, Ferris is a public university with a moderately-sized student population. This university ranks 13th out of 56 colleges for overall quality in the state of Michigan.

There were about 43 graphic design students who graduated with this degree at Ferris in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in graphic design from Ferris State University

Sponsored
Bachelors Degree Type
BA in Graphic Design & Media Arts - Web Design Program Name

Gain a solid grounding in your online web design classes and exercise your creative muscle with this specialized online bachelor's from Southern New Hampshire University.

More information about a degree in BA in Graphic Design & Media Arts - Web Design from Southern New Hampshire University

Related Programs

8
DePaul crest
DePaul University
Chicago, IL
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In IL
53 Graphic Design Degrees Awarded

Located in the large city of Chicago, DePaul is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #135 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means DePaul is a great university overall.

There were about 53 graphic design students who graduated with this degree at DePaul in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in graphic design from DePaul University

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
3rd Most Popular In IL
59 Graphic Design Degrees Awarded

UIC is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Chicago. A Best Colleges rank of #254 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UIC is a great university overall.

There were roughly 59 graphic design students who graduated with this degree at UIC in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in graphic design from University of Illinois at Chicago

10
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
6th Most Popular In OH
21.1% Growth in Graduates

Miami University - Oxford is a large public university located in the town of Oxford. A Best Colleges rank of #134 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Miami University - Oxford is a great university overall.

There were approximately 19 graphic design students who graduated with this degree at Miami University - Oxford in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in graphic design from Miami University - Oxford

Best Graphic Design Colleges by State

Explore the best graphic design colleges for a specific state in the Great Lakes Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Ohio 939 223
Michigan 915 399
Illinois 870 384
Indiana 737 55
Wisconsin 672 321

View All Rankings >

Graphic Design is one of 9 different types of Design & Applied Arts programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Visual Communications 876
Interior Design 710
Commercial & Advertising Art 546
Game & Interactive Media Design 403
Fashion Design 383
Industrial Design 349
Illustration 317
Commercial Photography 226
Other Design & Applied Arts 100

View All Graphic Design Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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